Best Pracce Guide 8

Selection and
use of plug-in
socket-outlet
test devices
Electrical Safety First is indebted to the following organisations
for their contribution and/or support to the development of
this Guide, and in particular to the HSE for providing the initial
draft:

BSI Product Services

www.bsigroup.com

In electronic format, this Guide is intended to be made available

British Gas
www.britishgas.co.uk
free of charge to all interested parties. Further copies may be
downloaded from the websites of some of the contributing
City & Guilds organisations.
www.cityandguilds.com
The version of this Guide on the Electrical Safety First website
GAMBICA Association (www.electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk) will always be the latest. Feedback
www.gambica.org.uk on any of the Best Practice Guides is always welcome – email
bpg@electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk
Electrical Contractors’ Association
www.eca.co.uk Electrical Safety First is supported by all sectors of the electrical
industry, approvals and research bodies, consumer interest
ELECSA organisations, the electrical distribution industry, professional
elecsa.co.uk institutes and institutions, regulatory bodies, trade and industry
associations and federations, trade unions, and local and central
Health and Safety Executive
government.
www.hse.gov.uk
*Electrical Safety First (formerly the National Inspection Council for
Institution of Engineering and Electrical Installation Contracting) is a charitable non-profit making
Technology organisation set up in 1956 to protect users of electricity against the
www.theiet.org
hazards of unsafe and unsound electrical installations.

NAPIT
Published by:
www.napit.org.uk

Electrical Safety First

NICEIC
www.niceic.com Unit 331
Metal Box Factory
Olimat 30 Great Guildford Street
www.olimat.co.uk London SE1 0HS

SELECT
(Electrical Contractors’ Association of Tel: 0203 463 5100
Scotland) Email: bpg@electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk
www.select.org.uk Website: www.electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk

This is one of a series of Best Practice Guides produced
by Electrical Safety First* in association with leading
industry bodies for the benefit of electrical contractors
and installers, and their customers.
Electrical Safety First and other contributors believe that the guidance
and information contained in this Best Practice Guide is correct, but all
parties must rely on their own skill and judgement when making use of
it. Neither Electrical Safety First nor any contributor assumes any liability
to anyone for any loss or damage caused by any error or omission in this
Guide, whether such error or omission is the result of negligence or any
other cause. Where reference is made to legislation, it is not to be
considered as legal advice. Any and all such liability is disclaimed.

© Electrical Safety Council. March 2014

 Selection and use
of plug-in socket-outlet
test devices

ELECTR
ICAL SO
C
TESTER KET

Aim
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has expressed outlet is safe to use. This guidance therefore covers not
concerns about instances where simple* socket-outlet test only simple socket-outlet test devices but also those of
devices have been relied on to demonstrate that socket- more advanced designs.
outlets are ‘safe’, either as part of the initial verification of
The guidance is intended to supplement the information
newly-installed socket-outlets, or for the periodic testing of
provided with socket-outlet test devices, which must
existing socket-outlets. This guidance is intended to
always be read and followed in order to ensure that the
address those concerns.
device is used safely and correctly.
No socket-outlet test device (however sophisticated) can
The guidance is intended for electrically competent and
be relied on alone to provide full assurance that a socket-
skilled persons only.

*It is important to distinguish between simple socket-outlet test devices that have been available for many years and
are in widespread use, and certain more advanced designs. Most simple socket-outlet test devices indicate basic
wiring faults. There are other, more sophisticated, socket-outlet test devices available which will, in addition, display
either the range of numerical values into which the earth fault loop impedance falls, or the numerical value of the
loop impedance. Such devices are considered to be either ‘advanced’ or ‘professional’, rather than ‘simple’, socket-
outlet test devices for the purposes of this Best Practice Guide.

©The Electrical Safety Council page 3

Introduction
There are a number of proprietary plug-in devices on the Socket-outlet test devices are commonly seen in tool bags
market that are designed to give a quick and easy but, unfortunately, due to a lack of knowledge of their
indication of the electrical condition of socket-outlet limitations amongst some users, such devices are often
circuits. used, inappropriately, as the sole means of checking
whether a socket-outlet is safe to put into, or continue in,
Although all these devices will indicate some of the basic
service.
electrical faults that may be found in socket-outlet circuits,
the simpler versions cannot be relied on to indicate certain This can only be checked by following the inspection and
other faults, some of which can be dangerous. testing procedures set out in Part 6 of BS 7671,
Requirements for Electrical Installations (IEE Wiring
Furthermore, no socket-outlet test device, including an
Regulations).
advanced or professional device, can alone provide full
assurance that a socket-outlet is safe to use. For example,
none can detect an open ring final circuit, a loose
electrical connection, a case of unsatisfactory insulation
resistance of circuit conductors, or a reversal of the neutral
and protective conductors.

Similar advice applies if a socket-outlet test device is used

to test an extension lead.

A further fault that most types of socket-outlet test device

cannot detect is a reversal of the line and PEN conductors
within the incoming electricity supply to the premises, if
the installation forms part of a TN-C-S system. The reason
why this potentially dangerous fault cannot be detected
by the test device is that the voltages ‘seen’ by the device
between the various contacts of the socket-outlet are
unaffected by a reversal in the polarity of the supply, as
shown in Fig 1.

Fig 1.
Reversal of polarity in the supply in a TN-C-S system

page 4 ©The Electrical Safety Council

Types of socket-outlet test device
There are three types of socket-outlet test device: simple,
advanced and professional. Examples are depicted below.
Simple devices are designed to detect various faults.
However, they cannot indicate or make any measurement
of the effectiveness of the protective earthing (the earth
fault loop impedance), or identify some other dangerous
faults.

Advanced and professional devices are designed to detect

ELECTRICAL SOCKET a wider range of faults, and can indicate or measure the
TESTER
effectiveness of the protective earthing.

These advanced and professional devices display either

the range of numerical values into which the earth fault
loop impedance falls or the numerical value of the loop
impedance. This information must be interpreted by the
user of the socket-outlet test device to determine whether
Simple device or not the socket-outlet is adequately earthed for safety.

The interpretation process requires knowledge of the

maximum value of earth fault loop impedance allowed
for the protective device that is relied on to provide
automatic disconnection in the event of an earth fault.
EARTH FAULT LOOP The maximum value depends on the type and rating of
IMPEDANCE (OHMS) the protective device.
0.0 - 1.5

1.5 - 2.5

2.5 - 5.0

5.0 - 10

10 - 50

50 - 100

Advanced device

Professional device

©The Electrical Safety Council page 5

Simple socket-outlet test devices
Simple socket-outlet test devices are usually similar in size
and appearance to a 13 A plug and typically cost less
than £20 each.
They are useful devices because they will generally
indicate whether a socket-outlet is functional and are able
to detect certain faults, including, in most cases, reversed
live and earth connections or the absence of an earth,
which can be very dangerous faults.
However, although simple test devices are able to detect
the absence of an earth, they are unable to measure the
earth fault loop impedance at the socket-outlet and might
therefore imply that it is safe to use even where the
earthing is dangerously defective.
This very important fact might not be stated on simple
test devices or the associated packaging or instructions,
and is also not known by many users of such devices.
Simple socket-outlet test devices can therefore very easily
mislead the user into believing a socket-outlet is
acceptably safe when it is not.
HSE investigations into simple socket-outlet
test devices
The HSE tested a sample of simple socket-outlet test
devices after an HSE electrical inspector observed various
instances where such devices were being used
inappropriately.
In two instances where simple socket-outlet test devices
had been used to demonstrate to an inspector that
socket-outlets in installations forming part of a TN-C-S
system were adequately earthed, the inspector found with
a professional socket-outlet test device that the earth fault
loop impedances at the socket-outlets were 22 Ω and
218 Ω respectively.
Such impedances are far in excess of the maximum
values providing automatic disconnection of supply by
means of the circuit overcurrent protective device in the
event of an earth fault.
Tests undertaken by HSE showed that simple socket-outlet
test devices would not indicate a problem unless the earth
fault loop impedance exceeded very high values, which
could be in excess of 20,000 Ω.

If the test device does not display either the

numerical value of earth fault loop impedance or the
range of numerical values into which the loop
impedance falls, then it is a simple socket-outlet test
device and must not be relied upon to indicate
whether a socket-outlet is safe to use.

This is because the test device cannot verify that certain

critical safety requirements of BS 7671 are being met,
including the adequacy of the protective earthing.

page 6 ©The Electrical Safety Council

Advanced socket-outlet test devices
Advanced socket-outlet test devices typically cost between
£50 and £100.
These devices are more complex than simple ones
because they use additional components and technology
to determine and indicate earth fault loop impedance.
The ease of using advanced devices is intended to
encourage more frequent checking of this very important
parameter.
They have all the normal check functions of simple test
devices, including reversed line and earth or reversed line
and neutral.
An advanced device displays the range of numerical
values into which the earth fault loop impedance falls.
However, there can be cases where this information is not
sufficiently precise to indicate whether a socket-outlet is
adequately earthed for safety. This depends on the
particular range of values and the type and rating of the
protective device that is relied on to provide automatic
disconnection of supply in the event of an earth fault.
©The Electrical Safety Council
Professional socket-outlet
test devices
Professional socket-outlet test devices typically cost several
hundreds of pounds.
These devices meet the requirements of BS EN 61557-3.
They usually take the form of an earth fault loop
impedance test instrument used in conjunction with a
lead equipped with plug to suit the socket-outlet that is to
be tested.
These devices display the numerical value of the earth
fault loop impedance rather than a range of numerical
values into which the measurement falls.
page 7
Comparison of capabilities of the different socket-outlet test device types
Table 1 summarises the capabilities of the three different types of socket-outlet test device covered in this guide.

Table 1 – Capabilities of simple, advanced and professional socket-outlet test devices

l
na
ed

sio
nc
ple

fes
va
Sim

Pro
Ad
Intended use Remarks

Indicate whether socket-outlet is functional ✓ ✓ ✓ Cannot, alone, indicate whether socket-

outlet is safe to use

Detect reversed line and neutral ✓ ✓ ✓ Does not detect a line and neutral reversal
within the supply network of a
TN-C-S system (see Note 3)

Detect reversed line and earth ✓ ✓ ✓ Does not detect a line and neutral reversal
within the supply network of a
TN-C-S system (see Note 3)

Detect reversed neutral and earth
Detect presence of earth
✘ ✘ ✘ Requires use of other test instruments
(e.g. continuity test instrument)
✓ ✓ ✓ Does not indicate whether socket-outlet is
adequately earthed for safety. Simple
socket-outlet test devices can easily
mislead by showing ‘Earth OK’ (or similar
indication) even when earth fault loop
impedance is in excess of 20,000 Ohms

Display the range of numerical values into which ✘ ✓ ✘ Displayed range may not be sufficiently
earth fault loop impedance falls precise in some cases to indicate whether a
socket-outlet is adequately earthed for safety

Display numerical value of earth fault ✘ ✘ ✓ Value must be checked to establish that
loop impedance it is not greater than the maximum value for
the relevant protective device

May be used to measure values of earth fault ✘ ✘ ✓ Value must be checked to establish that
loop impedance to certify or report on the it is not greater than the maximum value for
installation the relevant protective device

Detect open ring final circuit ✘ ✘ ✘ Requires use of continuity test instrument

Detect loose electrical connection ✘ ✘ ✘ Requires inspection

Detect unsatisfactory insulation resistance ✘ ✘ ✘ Requires use of insulation resistance test instrument

Indicate whether RCD will operate effectively ✘ Note 2 ✘ Requires use of RCD test instrument

Check whether voltage drop is within required ✘ ✘ ✘ Requires use of voltmeter and load, or
limits ohmmeter and calculation

Check for exposed live parts ✘ ✘ ✘ Requires inspection

Notes.

1) ✓ Denotes device is capable. ✘ Denotes device is not capable.

2) Some types of advanced test device can carry out a functional test of an RCD protecting the socket-outlet.

3) Some socket-outlet test devices do have the ability to detect reversed line and neutral polarity in the supply network.
Alternatively, this dangerous condition may be detected by use of an appropriate voltage detection device.
page 8 ©The Electrical Safety Council
Training for users of socket-outlet
test devices
Users of socket-outlet test devices should
be trained to:
• use the socket-outlet test device correctly and safely
• know the capabilities and limitations of the
different types of socket-outlet test device
• understand the types of fault that can be present at
a socket-outlet
• identify the means by which the electrical
installation is earthed (for example, through an
earth terminal provided by the electricity distributor
(TN system) or through earth rods (TT system)
• know what earth fault loop impedance means, and
what values of earth fault loop impedance are
acceptable
• determine whether or not RCD protection is present
or should be provided
• know when to take further action.
©The Electrical Safety Council
Initial verification or testing after
maintenance
New, repositioned or replaced socket-outlets should not
be put into service until the required verification
procedures have been completed and it has been
established that the requirements of BS 7671 have been
met. (Regulation 134.2 refers.)
In particular, for new work, it is unsafe and therefore
unacceptable to energise a socket-outlet final circuit and
then to plug in a socket-outlet test device to check for
basic wiring faults.
Condition Reporting
(Periodic Inspection Reporting)
For condition reporting, inspection comprising careful
scrutiny and the appropriate tests of Chapter 61 of
BS 7671 should be performed.
The appropriate tests on a socket-outlet would normally
consist of protective conductor continuity or ring final
circuit continuity, insulation resistance, polarity, earth fault
loop impedance and functionality, including the correct
operation of any RCD protecting the socket-outlet.
page 9
Summary
Socket-outlet test devices are useful because they will
generally indicate whether a socket-outlet is functional.
They are able to detect certain faults, including, in most
cases, reversed live and earth connections, which can be
very dangerous.

There are three types of socket-outlet test device: simple,

advanced and professional.

Although all three types will indicate some of the basic

electrical faults that may be found in socket-outlet circuits,
the simpler versions cannot make any measurement of
the effectiveness of the protective earthing or indicate
certain other faults, some of which can be dangerous.

Simple socket-outlet test devices can also very easily

mislead the user into believing that a socket-outlet is
adequately earthed by showing ‘Earth OK’ or similar
indication even when the earth fault loop impedance
is in excess of 20,000 Ohms.

If a socket-outlet test device cannot display the earth fault

loop impedance, it should not be used to check whether a
socket-outlet is adequately earthed for safety.

If a socket-outlet test device can display the range of

numerical values into which the earth fault loop
impedance falls, it may still be necessary in some
instances to obtain the numeric value (using a
professional socket-outlet test device) to confirm that a
socket-outlet is adequately earthed for safety.

No socket-outlet test device (however sophisticated) can

be relied on alone to provide full assurance that a socket-
outlet is safe to use.

The only means of checking whether a newly installed

socket-outlet is safe to put into service, or of determining
whether an existing socket-outlet is safe to continue in
service as part of a formal electrical installation condition
report (periodic inspection report) on the installation, is to
follow the inspection and testing procedures set out in
Part 6 of BS 7671, using a full set of test instruments
complying with the relevant parts of BS EN 61557.

page 10 ©The Electrical Safety Council

Your Notes

©The Electrical Safety Council page 11

 The latest versions of all the BestPracticeGuides
are available to download from www.electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk

Electrical Safety First

Unit 331, Metal Box Factory, 30 Great Guildford Street, London SE1 0HS
Helpline: 020 3463 5100
Email: enquiries@electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk Web: www.electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk
Registered Charity (England and Wales) No.257376 (Scotland) No. SCO39990

Electrical Safety First is the UK charity dedicated to reducing deaths and

injuries caused by electrical accidents. Our aim is to ensure everyone in the UK
can use electricity safely